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Match Report - Forfar Athletic

Forfar Athletic 0-0 East Fife, Saturday 30^th December 2023

Station Park, cinch League Two

Happy New Year Fife Fans! Here’s hoping we can start our 2024 in a more convincing manner than we finished our 2023!

The Fifers closed out their 2023 year in disappointing fashion last weekend, as they played out a goalless draw against Forfar Athletic at a rain-battered Station Park. East Fife failed to capitalise on a first half straight red card for Loons; with Josh Skelly being sent for an early bath at the tail end of the first period.

There was only one change to the starting 11 from our 3-0 dismantling at the hands of Bonnyrigg Rose, despite it being a severely depleted squad which travelled to Angus. Loanee Kieran Mitchell got the start in place of Jack Healy.

Despite the majority team struggling, and putting in a largely lacklustre performance on Saturday, the same can’t be said about Brogan Walls, and the U20s graduate put in a cracking shift in the middle of the park, particularly in the first half. After 7 minutes, he created the first half chance of the game, splaying a lovely ball through for Nathan Austin to fire a cross into the area. Unfortunately, it was overhit, and Marc McCallum easily collected it, something which became a recurring theme during the proceedings.

On the 20-minute mark, Forfar had a chance from a free kick that was roughly 20 yards from goal. Ross stepped up for the Loons though his strike was a touch wide of the right-hand post.

The free-kick started a mini barrage, which also saw Forfar’s number 9, Josh Skelly, being denied by the best shot-stopper in the league, Allan Fleming. The Fife veteran reacted quickly, after Skelly got a touch on a deflected pass. Inglis was first to the parried shot and lashed an effort goalward. Luckily for the Black and Gold, it rattled against the woodwork, and out of play.

The turning point of the game should have come in the 37th minute of play, when Brain Easton was mowed down by a very, very late sliding challenge from Josh Skelly. The rash tackle left referee Iain Snedden no choice but to show the forward a straight red.

East Fife then had the best chance of the game seconds after the dismissal, when the resulting free kick wound up with Walls. Brogan floated a ball to Nathan Austin, whose diving header was somehow denied by Marc McCallum, as the goalie produced a wonder save to tip the ball round the post.

That was the last true piece of action, as East Fife struggled to break down the robust Forfar defence.

The game was fought largely in the middle of the park, as the Forfar team played what looked to be a 4-2-3-0, with their attacking talent, which included ex-Fifer Darren Watson, coming deep to support their teammates.

There was no action in the second half, until the hour mark, although there was nothing much to shout about. Alan Trouten played a simple ball into Brogan Walls, though the midfielder’s shot was rather timid, allowing McCallum to make an easy save.

East Fife’s last chance of the game came with 15 minutes still on the clock. Fresh substitute Gregor Nicol lofted a free kick into the 18-yard box, which was met by McManus. The makeshift defender was able to unleash a shot, though it was caught in the pack, and bounced out for a corner.

Despite being a man down, credit must go to Forfar, who fought till the very end, and, at times, looked the more likely of the two sides to nick all three points. Morrison got on the end of Paterson’s cross with just five minutes on the clock. Thankfully, the flicked header fell on the wrong side of the post, and The Methil Milan were able to return to the Kingdom with at least something.

All eyes are on this weekend, where we are on the road again. This time, we are headed west to Dunbartonshire, to face Dumbarton at the Rock. We will be hoping for a much-improved performance, and consequentially, an improved result this weekend, although we have struggled on the Sons’ patch in recent outings.

Mon the Fife!

Report by Oli Anderson

Forfar Athletic – McCallum, Allan, Morrison, Hutchinson, Whatley, Inglis (Thomson 54’), Robson, Skelly, Ross (Mutale 76’), Watson (Paterson 62’). Subs not used: Paris, Ferguson, Macleod

East Fife – Fleming, Murdoch, Newton, Easton, Millar, McManus, Trouten, Mitchell (Nicol 72’), Walls, Shepherd, Austin. Subs not used: Schiavone, Black, Briggs, Rollo, Ramsay

Referee – Iain Sneddon

Attendance - 485

Ticket Info v Dumbarton

Admission prices for our cinch League Two match against Dumbarton on Saturday 6th January at the Dumbarton Football Stadium have been confirmed as follows:

Adults - £17

Concessions - £11

Under 16s - £5

Tickets can be purchased online in advance of the game.

Viewers outside the UK & Ireland can watch the match on East Fife TV with a monthly or annual subscription.

Match Preview - Forfar Athletic

Oli Anderson previews today’s match against Forfar Athletic

Apologies all, after a truly manic festive period, I forgot entirely to provide a match report on last Friday night’s match against Bonnyrigg. Thankfully, there was nothing much to comment on, and the (brief) report will feature in this week’s preview.

This weekend, the Fifers head to the home of the Bridie, as they gear up to play Forfar Athletic at Station Park, in an attempt to put last Friday’s poor performance against Bonnyrigg Rose behind us.

Last Week

The Fifers

The contest last Friday was, for lack of a better word, dire (at times), although the majority of the first half was quite closely contested. We held more of the ball, and created a few half chances, although we inevitably sat too deep, perhaps giving the Rosey Posey too much respect, which led to them romping to a 3-0 win, in what was arguably the Methil Milan’s poorest performance of the season.

The opener came right on the stroke of half time, when Bradley Barnett’s long range shot snuck past Allan Fleming. The Black and Gold defence had three opportunities to dispose of the ball, but failed to get close to it, allowing the Bonnyrigg midfielder to capitalise and hand the visitors the lead.

It went from bad to worse 5 minutes after the interval, as defender Kerr Young scored an absolute wonder goal, finding the top corner with his back to goal. It was a misery compiler for the Fife, but Bonnyrigg smelled blood, and put their pedal to the metal at MGM Timber Bayview Stadium.

Their aggression paid dividends just 3 minutes later as Fleming wiped out the Bonnyrigg frontman, leaving referee Chris Fordyce with no choice but to point to the spot. Neil Martynuik stepped up and fired home killing the contest.

The game died out, although the visitors could have pushed for four or five, in a performance where the Fifers looked lost at sea.

The Loons

There was plenty to cheer about for Forfar last week, as they did the unthinkable, and overcame title chasers Peterhead at the Balmoor Stadium. While the result still sees them stuck in 8th place, they will be hoping to kick on, at the expense of the Fifers this weekend.

Seb Ross opened the scoring for Forfar inside 15 minutes, when Finn Robson set him up. Despite the shot coming from a difficult angle, Ross managed to squeeze it past the Blue Toon’s keeper, giving the Loons the lead.

The game was later paused after a nasty collision between two Peterhead players, which resulted in David Wilson being taken away in an ambulance - we wish David Wilson a healthy and speedy recovery.

Shortly after the referee’s whistle blew to restart the game, Forfar doubled their advantage, through Seb Ross yet again, providing the two-punch knockout.

After going 2-0 down, Peterhead replied quickly, and halved the deficit 60 seconds later through Brown, but it wasn’t enough, and the Loons held on, recording a massive win.

The cinch League Two

Position	Team	Played	Pts	GD
1	Stenhousemuir	17	40	20
2	Peterhead	16	32	14
3	Dumbarton	16	30	13
4	The Spartans	16	29	11
5	Bonnyrigg Rose	17	22	0
6	Stranraer	17	19	-14
7	East Fife	16	16	-1
8	Forfar Athletic	17	16	-6
9	Elgin City	16	12	-21
10	Clyde	16	9	-16

This Week’s Fixtures

Bonnyrigg Rose vs The Spartans @ New Dundas Park

Clyde vs Stenhousemuir @ New Douglas Park

Elgin City vs Peterhead @ Borough Briggs

Forfar Athletic vs East Fife FC @ Station Park

Stranraer vs Dumbarton @ Stair Park

Last Week’s Results

East Fife 0-3 Bonnyrigg Rose

Dumbarton 4-4 Clyde

Peterhead 1-2 Forfar Athletic

Stenhousemuir 2-0 Elgin City

The Spartans 3-0 Stranraer

The Form

The Fife

We boast a measly 6 points from our last 6 league games, winning two and losing the other 4 contests, which is certainly far from ideal.

Our 2 wins came against Clyde on the road, and against Elgin, three weeks ago, at the MGM Timber Bayview Stadium. There were lots of similarities in the games, which look to be somewhat a mirror of the other. Both games saw fast starts, with us leading 2-0 at the break. On top of this, Nathan Austin and Brogan Walls, both found themselves on the scoresheets in the games, with Walls bagging a brace against Elgin City.

Our four losses have been tough to take, two of which came against last week’s opponents, as Bonnyrigg beat us 4-2 at New Dundas Park, in a midweek game not too long ago. Also, last week’s dreadful showing has added to our misery. Other than the Rosey Posey, our other losses came against those challenging for the League. We lost 2-1 against Stenhousemuir (1st), and 1-0 vs Dumbarton (3rd).

The Hosts

Forfar’s form too is far from stellar. In their last 6 outings, they have recorded 1 league win, 1 draw and 3 losses, and a victory in the Scottish Cup (away to Tranent Juniors, at the tail end of last month).

Their win was the result vs Peterhead last week, while at the start of December, they shared the spoils with Stranraer 1-1.

Their three losses came away to Elgin, then away to The Spartans, both 1-0 defeats. Their other loss was a goal fest, as they fell 4-2 to Dumbarton. Despite never leading, they ran the title challengers close. They went 1-0 thanks to James ‘Jinky’ Hilton, before Skelly equalised from the spot. Shiels then re-gave the Sons the lead, before Seb Ross equalised in the 1st minute of 1st half stoppage time. It was all for naught however, as Finlay Gray handed Dumbarton the lead for the third time before the interval, and the 2nd half performance that followed saw Dumbarton cruise to a 4-2 win.

Previous Encounter

The sides had to settle for a draw last time they met at the MGM Timber Bayview Stadium earlier this season in what was a hotly contested battle.

The Loons had two great chances in the opening 10 minutes due to unforced errors, and they forced stopper Allan Fleming into two reaction saves, but they could not capitalise on Fife’s nervy start.

After 12 minutes however, the Methil Men took the lead against the run of play. Nathan Austin fantastically nodded the ball down to Alan Trouten, who hit the ball with the outside of his boot on the half volley, nestling the ball in the top corner, leaving the goalie with absolutely no chance.

There were little opportunities in the rest of the first half, though Forfar controlled the contest, particularly in the middle of the park, and it was clear that the half time whistle benefitted the Fifers more than the Loons.

Forfar also had the lion’s share of the attacks in the opening stages of the second period too, with Paterson causing the Fife backline all sorts of bother, cutting inside and beating his men on the outside on numerous occasions.

Despite this, the Fifers should have killed the game in the 65th minute and would have if it weren’t for the world class defending from Morrison. Shepherd broke away and hammered down the right flank with blistering pace, he then cut inside, along the by-line and steadied himself, before a lovely, drilled pass was fired along the ground. Healy looked set to meet it, and bag his first of the season, but Morrison got there first and flicked it behind for a corner.

The equaliser came in the 80th minute, in a scramble from a whipped ball allowing Morrison to head home and ensure they did not return to Forfar empty handed. It was a disappointing way to end the game, as East Fife had shown resilience and patience throughout as they struggled on the park.

Team Colours

The Fifers will don the away pink, Taxi Centre-sponsored kit, paired with matching pink socks and black shorts. Oor goalie will be clad in all yellow for the match.

Our hosts, Forfar Athletic, will wear all navy this afternoon, while the Loons’ keeper will be dressed in green.

Squad News

It will be a head scratcher for McDonald this weekend, as there is a number of injuries and illness within the East Fife camp. Final confirmation of the matchday squad will not be determined until the morning of the game.

In positive news, skipper Stewart Murdoch has managed to bounce back from the knock he received last week and will be available for selection this weekend.

Match Admission

Admission for the match is exclusively by cash in the turnstiles on matchday with prices below:

Standing (Terrace)- Adults- £14

                               Concession- £8

                               U16- £5

Seated (The Stand)- Adults- £15

                                 Concessions- £9

                                 U16s- £5

Live Streaming

Live Streaming of the game will be available on East Fife TV for our international fans. This can be accessed through a monthly or season pass. You can access this HERE!

There is no live stream available this weekend for viewers within the UK or Ireland.

Match Catering

The 1984 Lounge at Station Park is open to all supporters from 12.30pm for pre-match refreshments, and again following the full-time whistle.

The Refreshment Kiosk will also be open after entering the ground via the turnstiles.

Officials

The on-pitch official on Saturday will be Iain Snedden while his assistants running the line are John Stewart and Robert Mackinnon.